Method and system for estimating call durations for improved call queue management

This technology generally relates to methods and systems for handling telephone calls, and more particularly to methods and systems for estimating call durations in order to improve call queue management and efficiency with respect to telephone support systems.

Customers calling into a customer services telephone support team often face queue wait times. Conventionally, calls are serviced in the order in which they arrive, i.e., first in, first out. When there are more calls than service agents, customers wait for service. Because calls are handled in the order in which they arrive, calls may not be handled efficiently, especially when viewed from the customer's perspective.

Accordingly, there is a need for a method for estimating call durations in order to improve call queue management and efficiency with respect to telephone support systems.

The present disclosure, through one or more of its various aspects, embodiments, and/or specific features or sub-components, provides, inter alia, various systems, servers, devices, methods, media, programs, and platforms for methods and systems for estimating call durations in order to improve call queue management and efficiency with respect to telephone support systems.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, a method for handling a telephone call is provided. The method is implemented by at least one processor. The method includes: receiving, by the at least one processor, a first incoming telephone call from a first person; retrieving, by the at least one processor, historical information that relates to the first person; forecasting, by the at least one processor based on the historical information, a next customer state that relates to the first person; and estimating, by the at least one processor based on the forecasted next customer state, a potential duration of the first incoming telephone call.

The method may further include: assigning a priority to the first incoming telephone call based on a result of the estimating; and determining an order of handling the first incoming telephone call with respect to each of a plurality of other incoming telephone calls based on the assigned priority.

The forecasting may include: applying a Hidden Markov Model (HMM) to the historical information; and determining an output of the applying of the HMM as being the next customer state.

The estimating may include: applying a regression model to the output of the applying of the HMM; and determining an output of the applying of the regression model as being the estimated potential duration of the first incoming telephone call.

The regression model may include a Gradient Boosted Machine (GBM) model.

The historical information may include at least one from among transaction-specific information, account-specific information, and call hi story information.

The transaction-specific information may include at least one from among information that relates to making a payment for a particular transaction, information that relates to obtaining an account rewards balance resulting from a completion of the particular transaction, and information that relates to initiating a dispute that relates to the particular transaction.

The account-specific information may include at least one from among information that relates to opening an account, information that relates to changing an address associated with the account, information that relates to requesting a replacement card, information that relates to requesting an account limit increase, information that relates to a dispute report associated with the account, information that relates to a fraud report associated with the account, information that relates to adding an authorized user for the account, information that relates to removing an authorized user for the account, and information that relates to closing the account.

The call history information may include at least one from among a number of calls received from the first person during a predetermined interval, a mean duration of the calls received from the first person during the predetermined interval, and a standard deviation of duration of the calls received from the first individual person during the predetermined time interval.

According to another exemplary embodiment, a computing apparatus for handling a telephone call is provided. The computing apparatus includes a processor; a memory; and a communication interface coupled to each of the processor and the memory. The processor is configured to: receive, via the communication interface, a first incoming telephone call from a first person; retrieve historical information that relates to the first person; forecast, based on the historical information, a next customer state that relates to the first person; and estimate, based on the forecasted next customer state, a potential duration of the first incoming telephone call.

The processor may be further configured to: assign a priority to the first incoming telephone call based on a result of the estimation of the potential duration of the first incoming telephone call; and determine an order of handling the first incoming telephone call with respect to each of a plurality of other incoming telephone calls based on the assigned priority.

The processor may be further configured to: apply a Hidden Markov Model (HMM) to the historical information; and determine an output of the application of the HMM as being the next customer state.

The processor may be further configured to: apply a regression model to the output of the application of the HMM; and determine an output of the application of the regression model as being the estimated potential duration of the first incoming telephone call.

The regression model may include a Gradient Boosted Machine (GBM) model.

The historical information may include at least one from among transaction-specific information, account-specific information, and call history information.

The transaction-specific information may include at least one from among information that relates to making a payment for a particular transaction, information that relates to obtaining an account rewards balance resulting from a completion of the particular transaction, and information that relates to initiating a dispute that relates to the particular transaction.

The account-specific information may include at least one from among information that relates to opening an account, information that relates to changing an address associated with the account, information that relates to requesting a replacement card, information that relates to requesting an account limit increase, information that relates to a dispute report associated with the account, information that relates to a fraud report associated with the account, information that relates to adding an authorized user for the account, information that relates to removing an authorized user for the account, and information that relates to closing the account.

The call history information may include at least one from among a number of calls received from the first person during a predetermined interval, a mean duration of the calls received from the first person during the predetermined interval, and a standard deviation of duration of the calls received from the first individual person during the predetermined time interval.

According to yet another exemplary embodiment, a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing instructions for handling a telephone call is provided. The storage medium includes executable code which, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to: receive a first incoming telephone call from a first person; retrieve historical information that relates to the first person; forecast, based on the historical information, a next customer state that relates to the first person; and estimate, based on the forecasted next customer state, a potential duration of the first incoming telephone call.

When executed by the processor, the executable code may further cause the processor to: assign a priority to the first incoming telephone call based on a result of the estimation of the potential duration of the first incoming telephone call; and determine an order of handling the first incoming telephone call with respect to each of a plurality of other incoming telephone calls based on the assigned priority.

Through one or more of its various aspects, embodiments and/or specific features or sub-components of the present disclosure, are intended to bring out one or more of the advantages as specifically described above and noted below.

The examples may also be embodied as one or more non-transitory computer readable media having instructions stored thereon for one or more aspects of the present technology as described and illustrated by way of the examples herein. The instructions in some examples include executable code that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the processors to carry out steps necessary to implement the methods of the examples of this technology that are described and illustrated herein.

is an exemplary system for use in accordance with the embodiments described herein. The systemis generally shown and may include a computer system, which is generally indicated.

The computer systemmay include a set of instructions that can be executed to cause the computer systemto perform any one or more of the methods or computer-based functions disclosed herein, either alone or in combination with the other described devices. The computer systemmay operate as a standalone device or may be connected to other systems or peripheral devices. For example, the computer systemmay include, or be included within, any one or more computers, servers, systems, communication networks or cloud environment. Even further, the instructions may be operative in such cloud-based computing environment.

In a networked deployment, the computer systemmay operate in the capacity of a server or as a client user computer in a server-client user network environment, a client user computer in a cloud computing environment, or as a peer computer system in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. The computer system, or portions thereof, may be implemented as, or incorporated into, various devices, such as a personal computer, a tablet computer, a set-top box, a personal digital assistant, a mobile device, a palmtop computer, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a communications device, a wireless smart phone, a personal trusted device, a wearable device, a global positioning satellite (GPS) device, a web appliance, or any other machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. Further, while a single computer systemis illustrated, additional embodiments may include any collection of systems or sub-systems that individually or jointly execute instructions or perform functions. The term “system” shall be taken throughout the present disclosure to include any collection of systems or sub-systems that individually or jointly execute a set, or multiple sets, of instructions to perform one or more computer functions.

As illustrated in, the computer systemmay include at least one processor. The processoris tangible and non-transitory. As used herein, the term “non-transitory” is to be interpreted not as an eternal characteristic of a state, but as a characteristic of a state that will last for a period of time. The term “non-transitory” specifically disavows fleeting characteristics such as characteristics of a particular carrier wave or signal or other forms that exist only transitorily in any place at any time. The processoris an article of manufacture and/or a machine component. The processoris configured to execute software instructions in order to perform functions as described in the various embodiments herein. The processormay be a general-purpose processor or may be part of an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC). The processormay also be a microprocessor, a microcomputer, a processor chip, a controller, a microcontroller, a digital signal processor (DSP), a state machine, or a programmable logic device. The processormay also be a logical circuit, including a programmable gate array (PGA) such as a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or another type of circuit that includes discrete gate and/or transistor logic. The processormay be a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), or both. Additionally, any processor described herein may include multiple processors, parallel processors, or both. Multiple processors may be included in, or coupled to, a single device or multiple devices.

The computer systemmay also include a computer memory. The computer memorymay include a static memory, a dynamic memory, or both in communication. Memories described herein are tangible storage mediums that can store data as well as executable instructions and are non-transitory during the time instructions are stored therein. Again, as used herein, the term “non-transitory” is to be interpreted not as an eternal characteristic of a state, but as a characteristic of a state that will last for a period of time. The term “non-transitory” specifically disavows fleeting characteristics such as characteristics of a particular carrier wave or signal or other forms that exist only transitorily in any place at any time. The memories are an article of manufacture and/or machine component. Memories described herein are computer-readable mediums from which data and executable instructions can be read by a computer. Memories as described herein may be random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), flash memory, electrically programmable read only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), registers, a hard disk, a cache, a removable disk, tape, compact disk read only memory (CD-ROM), digital versatile disk (DVD), floppy disk, blu-ray disk, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. Memories may be volatile or non-volatile, secure and/or encrypted, unsecure and/or unencrypted. Of course, the computer memorymay comprise any combination of memories or a single storage.

The computer systemmay further include a display, such as a liquid crystal display (LCD), an organic light emitting diode (OLED), a flat panel display, a solid state display, a cathode ray tube (CRT), a plasma display, or any other type of display, examples of which are well known to skilled persons.

The computer systemmay also include at least one input device, such as a keyboard, a touch-sensitive input screen or pad, a speech input, a mouse, a remote control device having a wireless keypad, a microphone coupled to a speech recognition engine, a camera such as a video camera or still camera, a cursor control device, a global positioning system (GPS) device, an altimeter, a gyroscope, an accelerometer, a proximity sensor, or any combination thereof. Those skilled in the art appreciate that various embodiments of the computer systemmay include multiple input devices. Moreover, those skilled in the art further appreciate that the above-listed, exemplary input devicesare not meant to be exhaustive and that the computer systemmay include any additional, or alternative, input devices.

The computer systemmay also include a medium readerwhich is configured to read any one or more sets of instructions, e.g. software, from any of the memories described herein. The instructions, when executed by a processor, can be used to perform one or more of the methods and processes as described herein. In a particular embodiment, the instructions may reside completely, or at least partially, within the memory, the medium reader, and/or the processorduring execution by the computer system.

Furthermore, the computer systemmay include any additional devices, components, parts, peripherals, hardware, software or any combination thereof which are commonly known and understood as being included with or within a computer system, such as, but not limited to, a network interfaceand an output device. The output devicemay be, but is not limited to, a speaker, an audio out, a video out, a remote-control output, a printer, or any combination thereof.

Each of the components of the computer systemmay be interconnected and communicate via a busor other communication link. As illustrated in, the components may each be interconnected and communicate via an internal bus. However, those skilled in the art appreciate that any of the components may also be connected via an expansion bus. Moreover, the busmay enable communication via any standard or other specification commonly known and understood such as, but not limited to, peripheral component interconnect, peripheral component interconnect express, parallel advanced technology attachment, serial advanced technology attachment, etc.

The computer systemmay be in communication with one or more additional computer devicesvia a network. The networkmay be, but is not limited to, a local area network, a wide area network, the Internet, a telephony network, a short-range network, or any other network commonly known and understood in the art. The short-range network may include, for example, Bluetooth, Zigbee, infrared, near field communication, ultraband, or any combination thereof. Those skilled in the art appreciate that additional networkswhich are known and understood may additionally or alternatively be used and that the exemplary networksare not limiting or exhaustive. Also, while the networkis illustrated inas a wireless network, those skilled in the art appreciate that the networkmay also be a wired network.

The additional computer deviceis illustrated inas a personal computer. However, those skilled in the art appreciate that, in alternative embodiments of the present application, the computer devicemay be a laptop computer, a tablet PC, a personal digital assistant, a mobile device, a palmtop computer, a desktop computer, a communications device, a wireless telephone, a personal trusted device, a web appliance, a server, or any other device that is capable of executing a set of instructions, sequential or otherwise, that specify actions to be taken by that device. Of course, those skilled in the art appreciate that the above-listed devices are merely exemplary devices and that the devicemay be any additional device or apparatus commonly known and understood in the art without departing from the scope of the present application. For example, the computer devicemay be the same or similar to the computer system. Furthermore, those skilled in the art similarly understand that the device may be any combination of devices and apparatuses.

Of course, those skilled in the art appreciate that the above-listed components of the computer systemare merely meant to be exemplary and are not intended to be exhaustive and/or inclusive. Furthermore, the examples of the components listed above are also meant to be exemplary and similarly are not meant to be exhaustive and/or inclusive.

In accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure, the methods described herein may be implemented using a hardware computer system that executes software programs. Further, in an exemplary, non-limited embodiment, implementations can include distributed processing, component/object distributed processing, and parallel processing. Virtual computer system processing can be constructed to implement one or more of the methods or functionalities as described herein, and a processor described herein may be used to support a virtual processing environment.

As described herein, various embodiments provide optimized methods and systems for estimating call durations in order to improve call queue management and efficiency with respect to telephone support systems.

Referring to, a schematic of an exemplary network environmentfor implementing a method for estimating call durations in order to improve call queue management and efficiency with respect to telephone support systems is illustrated. In an exemplary embodiment, the method is executable on any networked computer platform, such as, for example, a personal computer (PC).

The method for estimating call durations in order to improve call queue management and efficiency with respect to telephone support systems may be implemented by a Call Duration Estimation (CDE) device. The CDE devicemay be the same or similar to the computer systemas described with respect to. The CDE devicemay store one or more applications that can include executable instructions that, when executed by the CDE device, cause the CDE deviceto perform actions, such as to transmit, receive, or otherwise process network messages, for example, and to perform other actions described and illustrated below with reference to the figures. The application(s) may be implemented as modules or components of other applications. Further, the application(s) can be implemented as operating system extensions, modules, plugins, or the like.

Even further, the application(s) may be operative in a cloud-based computing environment. The application(s) may be executed within or as virtual machine(s) or virtual server(s) that may be managed in a cloud-based computing environment. Also, the application(s), and even the CDE deviceitself, may be located in virtual server(s) running in a cloud-based computing environment rather than being tied to one or more specific physical network computing devices. Also, the application(s) may be running in one or more virtual machines (VMs) executing on the CDE device. Additionally, in one or more embodiments of this technology, virtual machine(s) running on the CDE devicemay be managed or supervised by a hypervisor.

In the network environmentof, the CDE deviceis coupled to a plurality of server devices()-() that hosts a plurality of databases()(), and also to a plurality of client devices()-() via communication network(s). A communication interface of the CDE device, such as the network interfaceof the computer systemof, operatively couples and communicates between the CDE device, the server devices()-(), and/or the client devices()-(), which are all coupled together by the communication network(s), although other types and/or numbers of communication networks or systems with other types and/or numbers of connections and/or configurations to other devices and/or elements may also be used.

The communication network(s)may be the same or similar to the networkas described with respect to, although the CDE device, the server devices()-(), and/or the client devices()-() may be coupled together via other topologies. Additionally, the network environmentmay include other network devices such as one or more routers and/or switches, for example, which are well known in the art and thus will not be described herein. This technology provides a number of advantages including methods, non-transitory computer readable media, and CDE devices that efficiently implement a method for estimating call durations in order to improve call queue management and efficiency with respect to telephone support systems.

By way of example only, the communication network(s)may include local area network(s) (LAN(s)) or wide area network(s) (WAN(s)), and can use TCP/IP over Ethernet and industry-standard protocols, although other types and/or numbers of protocols and/or communication networks may be used. The communication network(s)in this example may employ any suitable interface mechanisms and network communication technologies including, for example, teletraffic in any suitable form (e.g., voice, modem, and the like), Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTNs), Ethernet-based Packet Data Networks (PDNs), combinations thereof, and the like.

The CDE devicemay be a standalone device or integrated with one or more other devices or apparatuses, such as one or more of the server devices()(), for example. In one particular example, the CDE devicemay include or be hosted by one of the server devices()-(), and other arrangements are also possible. Moreover, one or more of the devices of the CDE devicemay be in a same or a different communication network including one or more public, private, or cloud networks, for example.

The plurality of server devices()-() may be the same or similar to the computer systemor the computer deviceas described with respect to, including any features or combination of features described with respect thereto. For example, any of the server devices()-() may include, among other features, one or more processors, a memory, and a communication interface, which are coupled together by a bus or other communication link, although other numbers and/or types of network devices may be used. The server devices()-() in this example may process requests received from the CDE devicevia the communication network(s)according to the HTTP-based and/or JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) protocol, for example, although other protocols may also be used.

The server devices()-() may be hardware or software or may represent a system with multiple servers in a pool, which may include internal or external networks. The server devices()-() hosts the databases()-() that are configured to store data that relates to individual customer accounts and information that relates to customer calls and transactions history.